DOCUMENT RESUME ED 287 174 CS 210 835 AUTHOR Clatanoff, Doris A. TITLE Teaching Shakespeare in the Elementary Grades. PUB DATE Feb 87 NOTE 20p.; Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Texas Joint Council of Teachers of English (22nd, Corpus Christi, TX, February 5-7, 1987). PUB TYPE Viewpoints (120) -- Guides - Classroom Use - Guides (For Teachers) (052) -- Speeches/Conference Papers (150) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Childhood Interests; Children; Childrens Literature; Class Activities; *Drama; Elementary Education; *Integrated Activities; *Literature Appreciation; Reading Aloud to Others; Reading Interests; *Teaching Methods; Theory Practice Relationship IDENTIFIERS *Shakespeare (William) ABSTRACT Often regarding the "great books" as too difficult for elementary school age children to comprehend, teachers have given students reading assignments that are less than challenging and have risked causing them to dislike reading because it is relatively uninteresting. However, it is possible to expose very young children to works such as William Shakespeare's plays and poems because of the universal elements contained in the stories, and the fascination children have for his supernatural characters. Children can understand the struggle between parents and children in "King Lear" and come to love the fairies and sprites in "The Tempest" or "A Midsummer Night's Dream." The plots of the plays can be offered in a simplified mIhnner using lines' "Favorite Tales from Shakespeare," and Lamb's "Tales from Shakespeare." In addition, teachers can use several classroom activities that combine history, geography, physical education, and health education by telling them Shakespeare's personal history and explaining that America was being colonized at approximately the same time. Children can also look at a map and locate London and Stratford-upon-Avon, play some of the games or sing some of the songs mentioned in the plays, or try some of the foods from Shakespeare's day. It is likely that such early exposure to Shakespeare's work will make studying Shakespeare in the higher grades much easier. (An annotated bibliography of children's books, a selected bibliography for teachers, and lists of films, periodicals, and activities are included.) (JC) *************************************************,********************* Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** Di* DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) tTfira document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it 0 Minor chanpia have been made to improve reproduction quality Points of view or opinions stated in this rfo.; me nt do not necessarily represent official 0E111 position or policy Co CV Teaching Shakespeare in the Elementary Grades LLJ Doris A. Clatanoff "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY Doris A. Clataneff TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." o d 2 Dr. Doris A. Clatanoff Texas A&I University TEACHING SHAKESPEARE IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES "There was a certain island in the sea, the only inhabitants of which were an old man whose name was Prospero, andhis daughter Miranda, a very beautiful young lady. She came to this island so young, that she had no memory of having seen any other human face than her father's"(Opening of Lamh's rendition of THE TEMPEST). In this story, Shakespeare placed Miranda on an island, where she had been transported from the practicalrealities of life to a magical island where enchantment, spirits, andsprites dwelled. Just as the master Williaa Shakespeare, in his romance THETEMPEST, created a Prospero who removed his daughter to a magical island, so we as teachers cantransport our students to magical realms through their contacts with goodliterature. WHY should we attempt to teach the classics to children?HOW might we incorporate such study into our curriculum?What materials are available to assist us in our endeavors? These are the questions that I propose to address this morning. First of all, WHY should we teach the works of aclassical writer such as Shakespeare? Some of you may recall Marva Collins, a public schoolteacher from Chicago who achieved notoriety around the turn of the decadebecause of her ability to motit;ate ghetto children in her Westside PreparatorySchool. Listen to what Ms. Collins has to say about the use of great booksin her teaching of such adren: (MARVA COLLINS' WAY, pp. 178-79) "The great books were their greatest teacher.While there are critics who claim the classics are toodifficult for younger students to read-that an eleven year old, for example, can't understand something as complicated as The Brothers Karamazov - I have found that great literature notonly teaches students to read but makes them thirsty for more and moreknowledge. These books are over the head of the student reader; that is the purposeof reading them. We read to stretch the mind, to seek, to strive, to wonder,and then reread. We discuss the ideas contained in those books with others, and we temper our own thoughts. The great books are great teachers because they 3 Dr. Clatanoff TEACHING SHAKESPEARE IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES - 2 demand the attention of the reader. The mundane content of second-rate literature turns,students off from reading forever. However, I did not leave the children to read these books by themselves. They read a chapter aloud each day in class and a chapter each night at home. We went over these books paragraph by paragraph, often line by line,discussing the ideas and following the characters, action, and movement of the story.The literature they read became part of them. The more I worked with them and the older they got, they began to communicate with each other through the things they learned.Their street lingo began to disappear sometimes to be replaced with lines they hadread. To me they were beginning to sound like Rhodes Scholars - even when they were insulting one another. Once when a student told a lie in class, someone said, "Speak the speech trippingly on thytongue," and another chimed in, "The false face does hide what the false heart does know."If a girl was acting too flirty, . the other girls would accuse her of acting like the Wife of Bath. One day my son Patrick had a pimple on his face and his sister Cindy told him he looked like the Summoner in Canterbury Tales. Another time when a rubberband shot across the room, I asked Michael whether he had done it. He said no and blamed it on Phillip, who said, "Et tu, Michael?This was the most unkindest cut Jf all." Obviously, the teasing insults are not necessarily goals for which to strive,but they do display the ability of students to assimilate and apply ideas from great literature. A central message from Collins conveys the idea that we should not underestimate the abilities of our students--even young students or slowerlearners- - by denying them access to great literature--the magical as represented by the bard William Shakespeare, among others. Further, in drawing up a reading list for children ages four,five, and six, Collins cites works by Leo Tolstoy, Mark Twain, Pearl S. Buck, and, of course, TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE by Charles and Mary Lamb. The reading list for Westside Preparatory School includes works such as Chaucer's CANTERBURY TALES,Faulkner's LIGHT IN AUGUST, Golding's LORD OF THE FLIES, Homer's ODYSSEY, andLamb's TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE. Collins also believes that children should be encouraged to memorize famous poems of their choice. Included in her listing are the POEMS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE. Let's move now beyond the advocacy of one individual teacher and examine a broader context to ascertain the validity of teaching Shakespeare in theelementary Dr. Clatanoff TEACHING SH=ESPEARE IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES - 3 grades ( I am thinking in the broad sense of grades K-8 here).We live in a dynamic educational environment. Because of this, we must recognize the emerging issues in English Language Arts Education. National reports such as A NATION AT RISK: THE IMPERATIVE FOR EDUCATIONAL REFORM acknowledge the centrality of language study at all educational levels. Literacy is an essential goal of all schools and language competence is perceived as essential if adults are to function in our complex society. Among other concerns, the value of literary study has once again been asserted because it can impart our cultural heritage, promote understanding of other cultures and provide insights into lasting human values. In addition, students need to develop their speaking and liSteaing skills in order to function in our society. Can one study the works of another writer who provides greater insights into lasting human values than does Shakespeare?Can one find greater works to speak and hear than those of Shakespeare?I think not. In its 1982 statement on the ESSENTIALS OF ENGLISH, NCTE emphasizes the significance of the study and uses of English. Once again English is central to language arts education at all educational levels, with not only language but literary study "perceived as the humane center of the curriculum" (GUIDELINES FOR THE PREPARATION OF TEACHERS OF LANGUAGE ARTS, p.2). In addition, speaking, listening, reading, and writing are interrelated in the current process-oriented classrooms--another great opportunity to move from the practical to the magical with William Shakespeare. Some of the general comments that I have just made relate directly to the implementation of the Essential Elements in our classrooms.For example, kinder- garten students may develop their listening skills when the teacher reads a FAVORITE TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE by Bernard Miles. As the teacher reads MACBETH, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, ROMEO AND JULIET, TWELFTH NIGHT, or HAMLET, students may focus attention on a speaker without interrupting" (EE1A).